


why is this night different

by lhknox



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Love, Original Character(s), Original Character-centric, Pesach | Passover, Religion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-17
Updated: 2019-04-17
Packaged: 2020-01-15 08:47:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18495487
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lhknox/pseuds/lhknox
Summary: jamie brings her girlfriend to the family seder for the first time.it's a big deal.





	why is this night different

**Author's Note:**

> well since everybody decided to have a meltdown on twitter and create a new character whomst we love named hanna, i thought it would be a great opportunity to write a little pesach gift for everybody!
> 
> there's like a thousand threads at this point about hanna, our daughter and the love of our lives. most of them can be found on ell's twitter (@eastofell)
> 
> i'll include the translations i think are important at the bottom of the fic, but if theres anything u wanna know more about feel free to ask me in the comments or shoot me a message on tumblr/twitter!

She’s not sure why she’s so nervous.

 

It’s just dinner with her partner’s parents. And Hanna’s known her partner’s parents for years, even longer than she’s known her partner. Hell, she’d go as far to say that they’re colleagues.

 

“Do NOT let my mom hear you call her a colleague,” Jamie says as she gets dressed. Hanna’s been ready for an hour already and annoying Jamie for the entire time.

 

“Your mom loves me, though. She called me her colleague last week.”

 

Jamie rolls her eyes. “Sunshine or Scary?” she asks, falling back into the old nicknames Hanna once used.

 

Hanna’s eyes go wide. “Right. Noted.”

 

“Babe, there is absolutely no reason for you to be this bugged out,” Jamie says. “Can you zip me?”

 

Hanna absentmindedly does up Jamie’s dress. Any other time, she’d make some stupid comment about being morally objected to putting more clothes onto Jamie’s body at any given time. But not tonight.

 

“What if they hate me?” Hanna asks.

 

“They’ve known you for almost five years. If they hated you, they’d let you know.”

 

Hanna flops back onto the bed and moans dramatically.

 

“Your mom tells me she hates me all the time!!”

 

“Those are just playful ‘I hate you’s. Believe me, if she really hated you, you’d know it.”

 

“She misspells my name in spoken conversation.”

 

Jamie shrugs. “Playful banter.”

 

“And what if you get called out on some robbery gone wrong or a kitten stuck in a tree? Then I’m just left alone?”

 

Jamie crouches down on the bed awkwardly, making sure she doesn’t crease her new dress. She kisses Hanna on the cheek and Hanna just pouts.

 

“No Overwatch tonight,” she says, “I’m leaving my suit at home. Saving the city is not worth the wrath of my mothers or my grandmother.”

 

“Bringing a plus one home for Seder is a huge deal,” Hanna says. “Are you sure you wanna do this? There’s no going back.”

 

“I’ve never been more sure, babe.”

 

Jamie stands up and potters around as she finishes getting ready. Hanna (finally) gets off the bed, and inspects herself in the mirror, making sure her suit isn’t wrinkled.

 

“Wow, how did I manage to get myself such a hot fiancee?” Jamie says as she stares at their reflections. She snakes her arms around Hanna’s body and leans up to rest her chin on her shoulder. Hanna smiles, finally relaxing just a tiny bit. She turns around - still in Jamie’s arms - and kisses her softly.

 

“So I’m thinking,” Jamie says. “We tell them we’re engaged tonight?”

 

Hanna is no longer relaxed. 

 

“It’s been like two days,” Hanna says. “You said we could take some time, just the two of us.”

 

“I know, but babe, they’re my parents and they love you and I want them to know that you cried for thirty minutes after I said yes.”

 

“But I don’t wanna make Seder all about us, that just feels sort of rude.”

 

Jamie rolls her eyes. “Last night you said you’d rather have Professor Daxam as your supervisor than have to sit through Maggid again.”

 

Hanna sighs. “I’m… You know I’m scared. I’ve already been rejected by my own family, the idea of being rejected by yours as well is terrifying.”

 

Jamie raises her eyebrow. Hanna tries not to think about how she looks exactly like Professor Sawyer-Danvers.

 

“You are  _ not  _ playing the Homophobic Family card right now,” Jamie says. “You used that this morning when you asked for pancakes.

 

“NOT ALL OF US CAN HAVE SUPPORTIVE LESBIANS FOR PARENTS,” Hanna says. “But fine. I won’t play that card. Just. Give me tonight. We can tell them at the end of the second Seder.”

 

Jamie holds out her hand to shake. “Deal.”

 

Hanna takes her hand, and pulls Jamie towards her. She kisses her, and she can feel Jamie smiling as she does so. Hanna’s heart flutters.

 

“Deal.”

 

///

 

“You’re late,” Alex says as she opens the door. Hanna feels her heart drop. She and Alex are wearing the exact same suit. Alex has paired hers with a Matzah-patterned tie.

 

“Is Remi here?” Jamie asks, folding her arms.

 

“He got here ten minutes ago,” Alex replies smugly.

 

“Uh… Chag Sameach!” Hanna says. Alex stares up at her, deadpanned. Hanna may be six feet tall, but she always feels tiny under Alex’s glare.

 

“Ah, Hanna With An H, I heard you were invited this year.”

 

“Good to see you, Alex.”

 

Alex raises an eyebrow.

 

“Uh, I mean, Professor Sawyer-Danvers.”

 

Alex hugs Jamie and Hanna hears her whisper ‘be nice’  and they head inside together. Hanna feels her palms get clammy as she enters the living room and sees Jamie’s entire extended family.

 

Her brothers Remi and Emanuel, her grandparents, Eliza and Jonn, her Aunts Kara and Lena and her cousins Bronte, Darcy and Phillip.

 

“Looks like we can start,” Alex says. “The guests of honour have arrived.”

 

“Where’s Uncle Winn and Uncle James?”

 

“Connor’s sick and they didn’t wanna bring him out in the cold,” Eliza says.

 

“Oh thank god,” Kara says. “I’m starving and there’s still like two hours before we can actually eat.”

 

Maggie bustles in from the kitchen, her face lighting up when she sees Jamie and Hanna. She bypasses Jamie altogether and pulls Hanna into a big bear hug. 

 

“It’s so good to see you, Hanna!!!!!!!!”

 

“God, I’m right here, Mami,” Jamie says, pouting.

 

“Do I look like I care?” Maggie replies, slightly muffled. “I’m in the middle of hugging my favourite child.”

 

“Yes, ha ha we get it Hanna is the favourite,” Kara says, “but if we do not start the seder right this minute I am going to die.”

 

“Okay, alright,” Alex says. “This is the year I eat more Maror than Kara.”

 

“We are NOT calling the ambulance again this year, Alexandra!” 

 

///

 

The Seder is long, and by all means it should be tedious, but Hanna is too nervous to be bored. Maggie has sat her at one end of the table and she’s directly opposite Alex, who sits at the other end, staring at her.

 

The night is divided into fifteen portions.

 

First is Kadesh, where everybody pours the person they’re sitting next to a glass of wine (anybody under twenty-one is supposed to get grape juice, but Hanna smiles as Jamie slips Kara’s kids wine). They all stand as Alex sings the blessings, and Hanna immediately feels a little better as the familiarity of the ritual washes over her.

 

They all answer ‘amen’ in unison, and sit down.

 

“We lean to the left as we drink,” Kara says, “to be like royalty and signify we are no longer slaves in Egypt.” The kids are all old enough to know the reasons why they do things, but this is tradition; you explain everything you do and why you do it so the next generation knows how things are done.

 

Next is Urchatz. As the youngest member at the table who is able to walk, Phillip groans as he’s forced out of his seat and leaves to get the washing cup and bowl. He walks around the table, letting everybody ceremoniously wash their hands.

 

“Nice one, loser,” Darcy says when he reaches her.

 

“You pour the water for me,” Bronte says holding her hands over the bowl, and he rolls his eyes and does as he’s told.

 

“You’re doing great, buddy,” Hanna says when he reaches her, and he smiles gratefully. She remembers what it was like being the youngest at the family seder, subjected to torment and teasing from all the older cousins.

 

She catches Jamie smiling at her.

 

“What?” she whispers, “is there something on my face?”

 

“Nah,” Jamie whispers back. “I just love you is all.” She leans over and kisses her on the cheek.

 

“NO KISSING AT THE TABLE,” Kara yells. “OFFICIAL RULE.”

 

“Oh, come on,” Lena says, “ they’re just young and in love.”

 

“But I’m banned from kissing you,” Kara says. “And we’re in love and relatively still young.”

 

They all instinctively turn to Alex and wait for her judgement.

 

“No kissing at the table,” she proclaims.

 

“You just remember that later,” Maggie says.

 

Phillip returns from emptying the water bowl and Alex moves onto Karpas. 

 

“This year’s dipping vegetable of choice is potato,” Maggie says. Everybody takes a small piece of potato from the bowls along the table, and they dip them in the salt water. They all say the prayer before eating it. Everybody ignores as Kara sneaks in three more pieces.

 

Alex moves onto Yachatz. She removes the middle piece of Matzah from the plate in front of her and holds it in the air, breaking it into two pieces. She takes the larger piece and wraps it in a silk napkin. She places it on the floor underneath her chair.

 

“Whoever is the last person to be in possession of the Afikomen this year will win a year-long Netflix subscription, as donated by Grandma Eliza.”

 

Everybody gasps. Last year the winner had gotten a gift certificate to the local deli.

 

“Alrighty, time for Maggid!” Kara says, and everybody groans.

 

Maggid always takes the longest, seeing as it stands directly between the dinner guests and their dinner. Long paragraphs describing the miracles that took them out of Egypt, Passover celebrations during the times of the Temple, God’s might and strength. But it all starts with Ma Nishtana.

 

“Up you get, Lippy,” Lena says, and Phillip goes bright red at his nickname. Ma Nishtana is always sung by the youngest member of the family, and Phillip has  _ always  _ been saddled with the ridicule of singing it.

 

“Do I have to do it?” he asks, his voice breaking. His sisters and cousin snicker.

 

“I’m the youngest of my family,” Hanna says. “Why don’t I sing it with you?”

 

Again, everybody looks to Alex for her ruling.

 

Hanna can’t read the look that Alex is giving her, but she squirms under the glare anyway. 

 

“I’ll allow it,” Alex finally says, “but only if Kara also sings along. She’s also the youngest sibling. And Emanuel.”

 

“Mam’s the youngest, too!” Bronte chimes in, and immediately regrets it when Lena looks angry at being dragged into it.

 

“Eliza’s got no siblings, so she’s technically the youngest.” Lena adds. If she’s going down, everybody’s going down with her.

 

“Guess I’m singing,” Eliza shrugs.

 

And then, once half the room is singing, everybody else joins in and Phillip has never looked more relieved in his life.

 

Jamie holds Hanna’s hand under the table, and Hanna feels as she traces small circles with her thumb. It’s strange, how this group of people feel like her family sometimes. She thought she’d forgotten what it feels like to be a part of that sort of group, that unconditional love, roast you til you die group. But she looks around the table and she feels the weight of Jamie’s hand in hers and she realises that this is her family now.

 

Once they finish singing, they move onto the rest of Maggid. They go around the table, each person saying a paragraph, singing altogether when it calls for it. Everybody can feel the hunger set in. Kara’s nearly vibrating as she anticipates the Matzah they’re about to get to eat.

 

And then, she’s not sure quite how it happened, but Hanna’s asked to read the last paragraph of Maggid, to end that section of the night.

 

She looks around the table, and everybody stares back, waiting for her to finish off Maggid.

 

But something possesses her and somehow, instead of reading a relatively short paragraph, she finds herself saying,

 

“Jamie and I are engaged.”

 

There’s a beat of silence, a moment where nobody reacts. 

 

And then,

 

Maggie shrieks. Lena’s ecstatic and smiling widely. Kara’s happy, too, but Hanna swears she hears her mumble “couldn’t she have waited til after food?” Eliza and the Luthor-Danvers kids start singing ‘Mazal Tov’. Remi and Emanuel shake Hanna’s hand.

 

She turns to Jamie who looks at her in shock.

 

“I’m sorry I did that,” she says. “I just realised I was being a complete idiot and of course your family should know, they’re your family. And I sort of just felt like they’re my family, too, y’know? I shouldn’t have asked you --” Hanna’s cut off by Jamie, who slams into her, kissing her over and over again.

 

“You’re right, you are an idiot.”

 

They turn their attention back to the table. Maggie is openly crying and Kara’s stuffing leftover potato into her mouth and Bronte, Darcy and Phillip all look a little bored.

 

Alex looks down the table at them, still having not reacted.

 

“Mom?” Jamie says, and Hanna feels her stomach drop. She doesn’t know what she’d do if Alex didn’t approve.

 

“Are you sure about this?” Alex says, and Maggie explodes.

 

“They’ve been dating for years, Alex!” she says. “Of course Jamie’s sure! Stop being an asshole to our daughter’s fiancee!”

 

“I wasn’t talking to Jamie,” Alex says calmly. “I was talking to Hanna. Are you sure? Jamie snores like a sailor, fights people in her spare time and always comes home looking like a mess. Plus, she can never reach the top shelf. You’ll spend the rest of your time getting things from the top of the cupboard for her. Are you sure you want that?”

 

Hanna smiles and sighs with relief and then Kara yells at them all to get a move on so they can eat. Hanna thinks it’s probably a trick of the light, but for a second there she thinks she sees Alex wink at her.

 

Definitely a trick of the light.

 

///

 

The Seder ends close to 1am, and everybody’s ready to go home.

 

“I can’t believe we have to do this again tomorrow night,” Lena says, sighing. 

 

“That’s Judaism, babey!” Kara responds.

 

They say goodnight and Hanna finishes taking the last few glasses from the table to the kitchen, helping a grateful Maggie. 

 

“I know I’ve been your student for years,” Hanna says, “but once I marry Jamie you’re gonna have to get used to me being your daughter.”

 

Maggie puts down the plates she’s carrying, and makes Hanna do the same. 

 

“Bend down for a second,” she says, and Hanna obliges. Maggie puts her hands on Hanna’s cheeks.

 

“Mija,” Maggie says, her eyes pooling with tears. “You have been my daughter for a very, very long time.”

 

Hanna blinks back tears of her own, and hugs Maggie.

 

_ God _ , she thinks,  _ I’ve missed having a mom. _

 

Jamie walks into the kitchen and scoffs.

 

“I get it! Hanna’s the favourite! Can you stop rubbing it in my face please??”

 

///

 

“Drive safe,” Maggie says, giving them both one last hug. “See you tomorrow night.”

 

“Bye, Mom,” Jamie says, hugging Alex goodbye. 

 

“Thanks for dinner, Professor,” Hanna says, half jokingly.

 

But Alex puts a hand on her shoulder, and looks her dead in the eyes. For the first time in more five years she says,

 

“Please. Call me Alex.”

 

Hanna resists the urge to hug her and cry instead she just says, 

 

“Uh, okay bye,” and makes a beeline straight for the car.

 

Jamie gets in a minute later, laughing.

 

“Are you crying?”

 

“No,” Hanna sniffles. “I  _ was _ crying. Not anymore.”

 

“Oh, well, my moms are both crying on the porch right now, if that makes a difference.” 

 

Hanna leans over the console and kisses Jamie.

 

“I’m so happy I met your moms,” Hanna says.

 

“Weird thing to say when you’re kissing me,” Jamie says.

 

“If I hadn’t been their student, I’d never have gone to that conference with them and met you. And you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Our supposed one night stand was the best decision I’ve ever made.”

 

“I love you.”

 

And then they drive home together and spend the next ten hours sleeping, before they have to go through the Seder all over again.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Translations:
> 
> Maggid - one of the Seder steps, is derived from the hebrew word for "to tell". 
> 
> Matzah - unleavened bread eaten on Pesach
> 
> Seder - the long dinner/celebration that happens on the first two nights of Pesach
> 
> Chag Sameach - hebrew for 'Happy Holidays'
> 
> Maror - horseradish
> 
> Kadesh, Urchatz, Karpas + Yachatz - all parts of the Seder
> 
> Ma Nishtana - lit. "what is the difference", part of a longer song which has the phrase "why is this night different from all other nights"
> 
> \---
> 
> anyway u can find me on twitter @lhknox2 or tumblr @murdershegoat feel free to come chat!!!


End file.
